George Ramogi~Ajali Ya Sondu Infant [cKLyN63YQPe]

THE HUMAN TONGUE IS A PROPHET.

(Lew dhano Janabii/Jaulo)

A sad and true story is told in my village, about my father's maternal cousin, whose mother l was named after (Teresia Nanga NyAchieng)

My late uncle Daniel Adongo Odongo, my dad's twin often called me waya meaning my aunty!

Teresia Nanga Nyar Achieng' nene en Nya Sakwa Wawaye, daughter to Achieng' K'Adiema, sister to my grandpa Odongo k'Achieng.

Teresia was married in Sakwa Kakuodi Bondo.

Now this cousin to my dad, was known as Tito Okola, popular as Okola wuod Bondo.

He died in a road accident in the early 1960s, and my dad and his brothers cried like children, am told death was rare then, people valued kinship and lived with love and concern for each other then, than it is in the contemporary society.

That burial of Tito Okola wuod Bondo was marked with sorrow, deep sorrow, my dad and his brother Ogola Adiema wept endlessly like children.. they couldn't believe their cousin, agemate and childhood friend was no more..

Tito Okola was exact agemates with my dad, both were born in 1935, different months.

My uncle Richard Ogola Adiema then worked as a iphone ultra mechanic at Oginga Odinga's firm Lolwe Motors after Oginga Odinga had poached him from Leyland Albion Nairobi, where he had worked for about 8 years after he left The Kenya Polytechnic as a trained mechanic.

Ogola and my dad are said to have wept in deep grief, they were so much affected by the loss of their richard gere cousin sadly.

Tito was a driver of a popular PSV mini bus known as Lolwe, he was a very swift driver who did his work with passion and jolly; it is said of him that when he pounces and has a silent grip on the steering wheel, the bus will go.. to its destination whatsoever.. so long as Okola wuod Bondo oseling e sitariing (steering wheel).

The vehicle was operated by two people, Okola the driver and Agola the tout.

Okola was Ja Bondo Kakuodi while Agola was JAsembo.

Now, Agola liked the habit of showering Okola with praises whenever he was on his job spinning the machine..

Agola would be heard saying happily, Okola wuod Bondo, riemb ariemba gari oyie dhii.. Okola osiepna riembi.. Okola Okola... Okola thoo manonegi emanonega wuod Bondo..

Agola liked uttering this to Okola, that the same death that would consume his friend Okola will definitely claim him too.

Then one day Lolwe got involved in a greasly road accident at Sondu, along some bridge on river Sondu, Okola's chest got pierced by the broken steering, Agola had fell dead on the floor of the vehicle too, both were confirmed dead on arrival to the hospital.

This is that famous Sound karl anthony towns fatal accident that George Ramogi sang about in his song Ajali ya Sondu.

Then my uncle who told me this said to me, listen, wuod owadwa, lew dhano hulo wach manie chunye, kendo gima dhano wacho timore, lep dhano owuon chalo janabi, nyakitang' gima iwacho dinuoya dinuoya.. nikech gikone toen otimre, lew dhano nigi teko mang'eny ahinya

Mana kaka Agola nowacho nii thoo manoneg Tito Okola emane nege, tonotimore kamano kaka nene osiko owacho noh..

My own aunty, the immediate sibling follower to my dad and the last born of Sarah Awino Ny'Asembo; Mandera dana, Oracha nyar Kanyigoro.. my grandma, later had a son, her last born in the early 1970s and named him Tito Okola after the deceased Okola wuod Teresia.

It's interesting to note that Tito wuod waya who was named after Tito Okola the first, is a stalwart driver too, he calls himself an accident free driver.

Currently he is the driver St. Mary's Yala Boys School.

Having been a driver with the UN Habitat, Loreto Convent Nsongari, Ramba High school among others.

This story came in my mind as an analogy to what happened to me recently; l have this nephew who is my very close friend and confidant in the family, Raymond Owino Achieng.

Raymond and l had never been admitted to any hospital before, and booked in as inpatients, which of course is God's grace and gift of good health.

We often said jokingly, that if one day a serious disease came to attack us to a point of getting admitted to a ward for atleast a week then we wouldn't survive to come back home alive!

Two months ago Raymond was taken ill, diagnosed and booked in at Bondo Medical Centre for a week, later to Kombewa, to Agha Khan, to Avenue Hospital and back to Kombewa.

The condition got worse to a point that we lost him to travel to a journey where no man returns, to be with his creator.

Too sad for me in my heart to accept.

True as we always said it happened.

He never came back home alive

The words we say are very powerful.

Raymond as we lay you to rest on Thursday this week, l won't forget these words we shared and l will forever miss you Ja Wawaye, wuod owadwa kendo osiepna.

Oriti osiepa